Surfing Australia Announces National & State SUP Titles
New National SUP Series To Find Australia’s BestTuesday, 20 December 2011
Surfing Australia has announced a historic new Stand-Up Paddleboard (SUP) national series to uncover the country’s top exponents.
SUP has experienced explosive growth in recent years and the Surfing Australia SUP Series will showcase the sport’s best competitors.
The series will be held across three divisions – surfing; Technical Race following a Battle of the Paddle style format between 4-8km; and 20km Marathon. The Technical Race will be held on boards 12’6 and under, and the Marathon will be held on boards 14’ and under. The Battle of the Paddle format involves several laps of a course paddling in and back out through the surf.
Each State – Victoria, WA, SA, NSW and Queensland – will host their own SUP titles before the series culminates in the Australian SUP titles to be held at Port Macquarie from August 19-20, 2012.
The winners at the Australian SUP titles will represent Australia at the annual International Surfing Association (ISA) World SUP Titles.
Surfing Australia CEO Andrew Stark said there were exciting times ahead for Australian SUP competitors.
“In partnership with our State branches and the International Surfing Association we are absolutely committed to developing Stand-Up Paddleboarding in this country and ensure that participants are provided a strong pathway from club level through to international competition through the ISA World Titles,” Stark said.
“SUP has experienced incredible growth and Surfing Australia as the official governing body for the sport in Australia are very excited to work with the key stakeholders to ensure we provide the absolute best possible platform for them to enjoy their sport.”
Surfing Australia SUP Series:
Divisions:
Surfing: Open Men; Open Women; Over 40s Open
Racing Technical (Battle of the Paddle format – 12’6 and under) – 4-8km sprint: Open Men; Open Women
Racing Marathon (14’ and under) – 20km: Open Men; Open Women
Schedule:Event 1: February 25-26: Victorian SUP Titles, Pt Danger, Torquay
Event 2: February 25-26: HIF WA State Longboard and SUP Titles presented by SunSmart, Yallingup
Event 3: May 19: South Australian SUP titles, Victor Harbor
Event 4: May 24-27: NSW SUP Titles Festival, Port Stephens
Event 5: June 9-11: Surfing Queensland SUP and Ocean Paddle Festival, Gold Coast
Event 6: August 19-20: National final: Australian Surf Festival – Australian SUP Titles, Port Macquarie, NSW
The Surfing Australia SUP Series is supported by the Australian Sports Commission, the International Surfing Association, Nikon and Suncorp.
SUP VIC Inc. is an affiliated member club of Surfing Victoria and Surfing Australia.